Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer Kip Wadlow says the vessel broke off from a tug boat Tuesday night in 15-foot waves and winds that reached 46 mph. The Crowley Marine barge was adrift about 35 miles north of the village of Wales, north of the Bering Strait.

Wadlow says the tug Sinuk shadowed the barge overnight and was able to maintain some control by pushing it.

Crews hope to reconnect a tow line Wednesday morning, and a second tug was dispatched from Nome to assist. The Coast Guard sent a C-130 airplane north from Kodiak to monitor the situation.

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